Off the Rock, On the Record

Creating a workplace that prioritizes thanks and support is no small feat, but for more than 15 years, Courtney has done just that at Obsidian. Businesses and professionals looking to take their gratitude to the next level should tune in to hear how you can sow seeds of thanks into your corporate soil.

Burgeoning college athletes, listen up. If you want to capitalize on name, image and likeness deals, you first need to sharpen your communication skills. OPR’s resident sports enthusiast, Murray, joins Taylor on the eve of their two-teams colliding on the gridiron to discuss how athletes can secure (and maintain) the bag on NIL contracts.

If you work in public relations, you know what it feels like to pray a crisis away. After all, no one wants to navigate the intense tightrope that is responding to questions about something bad that’s happened at no fault of your own. But that’s our job as communicators, and we have to respond no matter how many times the topic is brought up. Lauren Hannaford and Whitney Nolan, directors of client services at Obsidian Public Relations, provide *sage* advice to help cleanse your company of the crisis that continues to haunt you.

We’re getting into the holiday spirit early...because why not? This episode of Off the Rock, On the Record is all about giving. If you’re looking to shop or support a Memphis business or organization this holiday season, we have a list for you. Our team shares insight on some of their favorite local gifts that should top your holiday shopping list.

Public relations professors share how they adapt to the ever-changing natures of our industry, world and the needs of PR students.

Lauren Hannaford shares the lessons she's learned throughout her decade-long tenure at Obsidian Public Relations.

Madison Mullis, public relations graduate student at the University of Memphis, shares lessons she's learned as a communication intern.

Murray Lace, senior account manager at Obsidian Public Relations, shares the lessons she's you learned throughout her first five years as a professional.

Abbie Hancock, public relations student at Mississippi State University, shares lessons she's learned throughout her undergraduate PR curriculum.

When you treat your employees well, they treat your customers well. That is why maintaining employee morale is critical to the success of businesses. Brittany Mizell shares how your employee communication plans can adapt to the times and meet the shifting needs of your team in this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record.

When it comes to the wellbeing of animals, The Humane Society of Memphis and Shelby County’s Ellen Zahariadis is an expert. As the Humane Society works to eliminate animal homelessness, they develop programs that meet evolving community needs – both human and animal. She shares how the Humane Society stays relevant in this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record.

We’ve moved past the childhood mantra stating words can’t hurt you – they carry weight and can make or break a company’s reputation. Addison Walker joins Off the Rock, On the Record to discuss how companies can craft messages that relay genuine empathy.

From weddings to retirement parties, Memphis expert Toni Williams of Spring Creek Ranch has planned it all. She shares how you can create unique customer experiences for events of all types in this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record.

How do you ensure that your new product or service is a success? Meaningful communication as you prepare to launch is key. Gracie Lee shares her expertise with us in this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record.

As a brand, social media is a great tool to connect with your audience in a personal way. Obsidian’s own Twitter-famous employee, Addison, sits down to discuss how businesses can use social media as a customer service tool to build brand connections.

When it comes to customer service, some brands go above and beyond. Differentiates good customer service from great customer service? On this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record, Murray shares how you can add pizzazz to your excellent customer service plan while staying true to your brand.

Crisis management may be the toughest part of a PR practitioners role. So, how do we support customer service on top of our other crisis roles? In episode three, Whitney walks through the best practices for working through a crisis situation. She also breaks down how to navigate customer service and outreach during a crisis.

How do you connect with your consumers in a digital era? Gracie joins the podcast to discuss digital reviews and how they can make or break a company’s reputation. She also provides professional insight on ways to use reviews as an opportunity to connect with your consumers.

In this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record, our director of client services – Lauren Hannaford – underscores the importance of customer service as a PR function. She also discusses why customer service is lacking in some businesses, how to rethink customer service in a digital era and how to start a customer service plan when one isn’t already in place.

This mini-season of Off the Rock, On the Record was written, recorded and produced by Obsidian’s 2019 summer interns – D’Marius Gillespie and Anna McGuire. The duo sat down to navigate some of the most pressing topics related to interning in the modern workplace, the value of the process and how to make it through your internship! Whether you’re looking for an internship, currently are interning or are an intern-at-heart, this podcast will provide comfort and a laugh, or two!

This mini-season of Off the Rock, On the Record was written, recorded and produced by Obsidian’s 2019 summer interns – D’Marius Gillespie and Anna McGuire. The duo sat down to navigate some of the most pressing topics related to interning in the modern workplace, the value of the process and how to make it through your internship! Whether you’re looking for an internship, currently are interning or are an intern-at-heart, this podcast will provide comfort and a laugh, or two!

This mini-season of Off the Rock, On the Record was written, recorded and produced by Obsidian’s 2019 summer interns – D’Marius Gillespie and Anna McGuire. The duo sat down to navigate some of the most pressing topics related to interning in the modern workplace, the value of the process and how to make it through your internship! Whether you’re looking for an internship, currently are interning or are an intern-at-heart, this podcast will provide comfort and a laugh, or two!

Al Austin of Mid-South Ice House joins Gracie Lee of Obsidian Public Relations to discuss the impact of social media advertising on small businesses.

Beverly Walker, founder of Lil' Bit of Country, talks with Account Executive Murray Lace about starting a business that's close to her heart! Starting with recipes her grandma made, Beverly has created a Memphis condiment classic. Learn how she did it in this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record.

Maggie Strom, principal at Tioga Environmental Consultants, sits down with Christina Babu of Obsidian Public Relations to discuss strategic business growth.

Tom Lawrence is a small business owner and a mountain climber. At the time this podcast is published, he's currently climbing Mount Everest in his attempt to complete the Seven Summits. On this episode of Off the Rock, on the Record, Tom shares how mountain climbing and being a small business owner have a lot in common.

The modern digital landscape has made professional development easier than ever. But, technology has also caused trends to change quickly, making it more difficult than ever to stay on top of the latestest happenings. How do you strike a balance between staying up to date on the latest industry trends and falling victim to information overload? Whitney shares how she balances her workload, professional development and media consumption, and why the latter two are critical to your everyday life.

Lauren, our director of client services, has held every role our firm has to offer. Through her time at Obsidian, she’s gained valuable insight into what it takes, and what you should do, to move up in your company and love it all along the way. No matter your industry, Lauren’s insights will prepare you to step into a new role or take a leap of faith and put yourself up for a promotion. She also shares some of the pitfalls professionals face when transitioning into a new position. You don’t want to miss her advice!

One of the most difficult facets of the working world is relationship management. As a PR firm, we’re no stranger to these difficulties, as we often support our clients in developing stronger relationships with their clients. Internally, we know that staying on the same page with clients can be difficult, but there are things you can do to keep even the longest relationship moving forward. No matter your industry, this podcast will provide insight on setting yourself up for success when working with new clients, and how to right track relationships that have gone off track.

Social media – it’s nearly unavoidable, personally and professionally. If you’re a business owner or in the communication industry, you know the importance of a strong presence on social media. Beyond a strong presence, there are social media nuances to navigate depending upon your business’ industry, products, target market and digital assets. That’s where we come in. Gracie lays out how and why you should be using each social media platform. This need-to-know podcast will help you decide what social media platforms to use.

We’re in the business of telling stories. Each client has amazing content to share, but some client audiences are harder to reach than others. When working with a client whose services are B2B or niche, it can be challenging to identify where and how to produce content. Don’t grow weary, there are plenty of ways to create content that add value to your business. Christina Babu works with a number of B2B clients on our roster, and she sat down to share insight on content marketing, social media and the state of media relations for B2B businesses. Intro and outro music is "Ingenuity" by Lee Rosevere (licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial License.)

If you’ve worked in PR for a while, you’ve likely encountered coworkers with degrees in strategic communication, advertising, marketing, or even journalism. While each college and university seems to have a different name for their program, enrollees are seeking positions in the same field – public relations. I spoke with Carlee Smith, a recent graduate of Arkansas State University, and Ashley McDuffie, a current student at Mississippi State University, about public relations education and their specific programs. Visit https://obsidianpr.com/podcast-s2-ep1/ for more information on today's podcast.

Our go-to event expert, Murray Lace, shares recent successes and tips for you to use in this episode of Off the Rock, On the Record.

Join Taylor and Kerri as they discuss all things related to nonprofit public relations and communication.

Lauren Hannaford shares insight on maintaining healthy, profitable client relationships.

Whitney Albert shares her media relations expertise in this episode of Off the rock, On the record.